bohemian-flaneur

[bohemian-flaneur]

Hike 27-01-2017

Waking up early in the morning, I mean as early as 4 AM, is a rare occasion for me. Today, I had to. The idea of a hike is such an irresistible activity for me. The long walk which starts with the wayward mind and the thoughts shooting in all directions slowly calming down to a peaceful inactivity which is in direct contrast to the non-stop legs and hands, occasional huffing and puffing and those sudden outbursts of sweat is unparalleled by anything else. I planned this 16 KM (to and fro) hike from my place within the Tibetan settlement to the island forest reserve in the midst of Cauvery River that lies on the Mangalore highway.

 The day started with my usual eggs and milk breakfast followed by a cold bath and listless browsing until 8 AM. Then I packed my ruck sack and started walking towards Koppa. In between, I stopped at my favourite breakfast shack for idli, vadai and smelly tea. The taste of that spicy coconut chutney and runny Tamil sambhar is always irresistible for me. I met my local friend James here after a long time. He runs a small grocery / cigarette store catering to the tourists here. He had just returned from his hometown (Siddapura) and we chatted a bit about the TN situation, marriage, etc. He offered to give me a lift on his moped till the city but I had to obviously decline. Well, now the hike started. I took the usual path, the ploughed land with far-off mountains and long trees, the slummy settlement close to Koppa, on to Kushalnagar crossing the Cauvery river over the bridge, the statue of Cauvery Amma overlooking the bridge, the other usuals and reaching onto the crowded bus stand. After this, it is going to be less of people. Usually, this walk would have been a bore but due to the balmy weather it was actually fun. I got to see the local meat market which I never knew existed - mutton, chicken and the fish of almost all kinds (river fish, sea fish, four foot long sharks, king fish,dried ones, red snappers, etc.). And the newly opened huge ass restaurant that is actually named "Mangalore Fish Cury Rice." This pretty much tested my New Year resolution to give up eating meat. Anyway, the resolution still stays strong and unaffected.

  Finally after the walk I reached my destination, Nisargadhamma, the island forest reserve. I have to admit, the initial view was a total let down. Nauseating tourists, too many shops selling knick knacks and of course the noisy crowd. I entered inside after buying the ten rupees ticket. The entrance led to the swinging bridge over the river leading on to the island.

Again nothing much to see. Not even greens. There were thick foliage of sparsely leafed bamboo vegetation. The sand way dry and dusty. 

As a natural instinct, I always take the path / direction that is least crowded. As I was drifting away from the crowd, I crossed the deer park with no deer and slowly the curved path led to a small pathway that was almost endless. On one side the river flowed though not much was visible as there was thick vegetation and a man-made rock & thorn wall. On the other side, there was a thick foliage of trees of various kind. By now, there was no human in vicinity except me. The only company was the sound of river flowing, bird sounds of various kind and the trees sashaying to the cool breeze. Finally I started enjoying the place with the peace that comes with solitude and stillness. After walking about one kilometre or so, I could see what is called in Tamil, "padithurai". This name is so poetic and just describing it as stone steps leading to river bank does not do any justice. The river passing through large boulders was largely shallow but very clear. The cool breeze and the sound of the flowing river was so enchanting. I mean dipping my feet in the river required no argument. I removed my shoes and put down my bag and got down into the river. The cold water was so refreshing and within a moment I felt so refreshed. May be it is just a mind thing but still it felt good. I walked into the water and sat on one of the boulders. It was just me and the river. 

It was interesting to see striders (of Gerridae family) walking on water. [Well, I'm no expert. I assume it to be striders based on my subjective assessment]

This reminded me of AK Ramanujan's poem titled The Striders,

“And search

for certain thin-

stemmed, bubble-eyed water bugs.

See them perch

on dry capillary legs

weightless

on the ripple skin

of a stream.

No, not only prophets

walk on water. This bug sits

on a landslide of lights

and drowns eye-

deep

into its tiny strip

of sky.”

After a while, some of the tourists started coming. Then louder ones came and I knew my time is up.

 While leaving I spotted a cafe on the highway which advertised itself as a organic coffee shop. I had to try the place and the coffee was really good. I got to know that the coffee beans used is sourced locally from Madikeri (a nearby town on way to Coorg) and grown by organic farming. This small and quaint shop also sold other locally produced organic stuff like chili powder, fruit pulps, etc. The interesting part was they had this bottled homemade wine produced from Jack fruit. I never knew such a thing existed but decided not to purchase it. May be some other day.

 The walk back was largely unmemorable and I treated myself with beer, actually beers, at the end of this walk at the local lounge bar. And as I expected, I bumped into the local alcoholic, Yasir bhai, who was sort of befriended by my friend on our last visit at this bar. I acted cold and kind of ignored him. I'm, as I would say lucky or as others consider a curse, destined to solitude and hermit-y life. But then, him being him, after I told him what I did today, Yasir bhai made a resolve to take me to a river bank that is far isolated from the tourist crowds and much more beautiful. Let's see If that works out.

 By the time I reached my room, rain started pouring down. It is going to be sunny tomorrow.

  Was it all fun? Well, of course.